The Brazilian MMA neighborhood mourns the demise of Diego Braga. The 44-year-old MMA veteran was killed by organized crime in Rio de Janeiro, police formally confirmed Monday.
Braga revealed on his social media on Monday morning that he had his motorbike stolen from his storage late Sunday night time. In line with witnesses, Braga determined to go to a favela in search of the automobile, however was mistaken by members of prison group Comando Vermelho as a member of a rival militia. He was allegedly then killed.
Braga, the chief of Tropa Thai group in Rio de Janeiro and a martial arts teacher for underprivileged youngsters in favelas, coached his son Gabriel Braga for his MMA bouts, main the younger prospect to the PFL featherweight finals in 2023. Gabriel misplaced a rematch to Jesus Pinedo within the $1 million finale.
Diego Braga was an energetic MMA fighter between 2003 and 2014, going through the likes of Charles Oliveira, Milton Vieira, and Adriano Martins, all of whom ended up competing within the UFC.
Braga coached legendary middleweight Anderson Silva for a number of of his ultimate UFC bouts and shared a card along with his son Gabriel at Future MMA 7 in 2019 in what would finally be his retirement bout. Father and son got here out victorious that night time, with Diego ending his profession with an MMA file of 23-8-1, profitable 16 of his final 19 appearances.
“My son has cornered me many instances up to now,” Diego advised MMA Fighting previous to the match, “so this can be a dream come true for me. He impressed me to battle once more.”
